The Early Signs of Postpartum Depression and How It Can Affect Children

We all know postpartum depression and poor mental health affects the parents/ caregivers but how does it affect a child and their development? Few people know that a poor state of mind can affect the child too. According to adc.bmj.com; Murray, Lynne, and Peter J Cooper. “Effects of Postnatal Depression on Infant Development.” Archives of Disease in Childhood, BMJ Publishing Group Ltd, 1 Aug. 1997, there is good evidence that parental mental illness has a big effect on child development. A child is dependent on their caregiver for everything; Lynne Murry and Peter Cooper explains. When a child is dependent on their caregiver and the caregiver is hesitant and not providing the right care it cause cause developmental delays in children. Children will lack communication and that mother-child connection; when this early maternal is happening, a difference in the cognitive development at 9 and 18 months was found

According to Garza, Anyssa. “Postpartum Depression and Its Long-Term Effects on Children.” Pharmacy Times, 15 June 2018, Evidence suggests that both clinical and postpartum depression increase the risk of poor outcomes in children. Research has listed that there is an association between postpartum depression and delayed cognitive and language development, lack of attachment, behavioral problems, and lower grades. Research has also found a link between postpartum depression and higher rates of depression in children during the late teen years. Myrna M. Weissman, PhD, analyzed the study, conducted by Netsi et al, and concluded that children born to women in the most vulnerable group have an increased risk of having lower math scores by 16 years, a greater risk of having behavioral problems between ages 3 and 4 years, and a higher risk of depression by 18 years old. These findings should encourage a universal screening for depression in all pregnant women and even screening beyond pregnancy.

My next article was by Healthline Editorial Team. “Children Can Also Suffer When Their Mothers Have Postpartum Depression.” spoke about an interview they did with a mom with postpartum depression; her name was Waite; Waite said she began experiencing symptoms just a week after her son was born. She struggled intensely for a year and really didn’t start to fully feel like herself until her son was 19 months old… they went further to mention that the most vulnerable were found to be families with mothers suffering with depression and that children of those mothers were 4x more likely to have behavioral problems and even develop depression themselves. The article went back to talking about Waite and her son,who is now 6 years old; he does suffer from some behavioral and emotional struggles. He was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, anxiety about being alone and might have autism spectrum disorder. Later in the article they started talking about if these things were inherited,“Reducing the symptoms of the parent with depression to remission has been shown to reduce adverse effects on children. These effects have been sustained in the children, up to one year following remission in mothers.” the author stated; then furthered on about how screening and treatments and asking for help can help the mom and child.

National Forum on early childhood. “Maternal Depression Can Undermine Child Development.” Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University, 2016, spoke about how maternal/parental depression can undermine child development and can influence the well-being of the children under their care. Because chronic and severe maternal depression can have the risk of having harmful effects on families and children, it can undermine the future prosperity and well-being of society as a whole. When children grow up in an environment of mental illness, the development of their brains may be impacted and weakened and affect their ability to learn as well as for their own later physical and mental health. Healthy development depends on the influences and experiences a child has, which can shape the development of the brain. The important part of those experiences can be described as mutual responsiveness of young children’s interactions with caregivers. For example, when can toddler asks to play and an adult responds appropriately with this builds and strengthens connections in the child’s brain that support the development of communication and social skills. Children’s emotional and behavioral problems within the context of their families are equally essential for treatments and programs aimed at improving maternal depression and depressive symptoms to treat, and measure their impact on the children.

Reeves, Richard v, and Eleanor Krause. “The Effects of Maternal Depression on Early Childhood Development and Implications for Economic Mobility.” Bookings.edu, Jan. 2019, Eleanor Krause. This article explains Mothers may experience prenatal depression, as well as postpartum depression within the first few months after a child is born; both of which may affect children’s development. During pregnancy, depressed mothers produce stress chemicals that might reduce fetal growth, increase the risk of premature labor, and increase the risk of health problems after birth. Living with a depressed mother affects a child’s stress response system, increasing a child’s risk of producing higher levels of stress chemicals and increasing the risk of hypertension. Maternal depression greatly influences the quality of mother-infant attachment which greatly impact children’s healthy development. The article furthers on to explain what depression is like by saying maternal depression varies but it is generally characterized by sadness, irritability, anxiety, loss of energy, loss of interest in caring for oneself and others, with other symptoms that affect the ways that mothers treat and care for their young children and influence children’s experiences and mental development. Depression can raise stress hormones to extremely high levels and make it more difficult for parents to be sensitive and responsive to their young children’s signals, as well as depriving them of the energy, focus, and patience needed to have quality interactions and relationships with their children. A strong developmental needs to start in the very early months and years of life or it'll be harder later in life. Early development does not always determine later development But it clearly influences it.

Personally I know that mental illness can affect a child and their development. It was pretty clear that depression or any other mental illness affects someone’s everyday life so why wouldn’t it affect the life of someone who is completely dependent on you? Based on my research of the topic I've learned that it doesn't have to be post partum depression it could be any type of depression; seasonal depression, clinical depression, manic depression, or many more. Children are completely dependent on their caregiver and when that caregiver is depressed and has no motivation to care for the child, the child is affected both physically and mentally but more mentally. I've learned that studies show that children who grow up with a depressed caregiver have higher chances of having mental health issues either it be a learning disability, anxiety or even depression. A child’s cognitive development can be heavily impacted by maternal depression; Maternal depression is also considered a risk factor for the emotional and social development of children. I learned more than I thought I would of out of this research.

I learned more about the early signs of depression and how much depression affects caregivers and children. I'll use this information in my future career, I hope to become a child psychologist and knowing the signs that a child is affected by a caregiver's depression is the first step to helping and hopefully solving a problem. Hopefully I won't need to use this information as a mother but if it came to it i would know when something is going wrong and know when to get help. If i know the warning signs of parental depression and see if in someone i know i can warn them and tell them to get help and to explain how getting help can benefit them and their child and if they don’t get help they need it can make things hard for them and the children. Going into this research i knew a little bit about depression and how it affected children from class but I learned so much more than I thought I was going to.